Bid to make India teleport hub to attract foreign investment

NEW DELHI: The government on Monday said it is working towards making the country a global teleport hub which will bring foreign investment.

"We have today 89 permitted teleports in the country. TRAI in its recommendations on policy issues related to uplinking/downlinking of television channels in India has also recommended that India should be developed as a teleport hub to allow turnaround or uplinking of channels from India keeping in view the geographical location of India and cheaper manpower," I&B secretary Uday Kumar Varma said.

"This initiative will bring in foreign investment, better technology and sustainable employment opportunities. This would place India in the league of countries like Hong Kong and Singapore," he added speaking at a summit organized by CII.

With the deadline for digitization days away, the secretary said, ``A quiet revolution is unfolding in the broadcasting sector as we are just a few days away from complete digital switchover from the analogue cable television network to digital cable television networks in the four metro cities of India.''

The ministry is planning to switch off the analogue signal for cable TV from November 1. Varma said Mumbai had achieved 100% digitization, while Delhi and Kolkata were not far behind at 88% and 82%, respectively. - Read More>>